ALTER BRIDGE – Fortress

When it comes to Alter Bridge, I’m kind of a late bloomer. I did know of their existence from hallo and a friend of mine gave a copy of their two first albums, One Day Remains (2004) and Blackbird (2007), but neither made any lasting impression on me and it wasn’t until they released their last album AB III (2010) the penny dropped. In all fairness, I must admit that I never really listened to the album with any intensity or interest – I mean, they were after all only Creed with a new singer and Creed weren’t anything other than Pearl Jam’s sloppy seconds! The reason I got into Alter Bridge at all is, of course, named Slash. The two songs on Slash’s first solo album that featured Alter Bridge master vocalist Myles Kennedy, “Back From Cali” and “Starlight” blew me right into next week. Not only were the songs great, Kennedy co-writes, he also had the vocal chords from Hell (or Heaven, depends on how you see it…) and that was enough to make me interested in Alter Bridge. Kennedy later toured with Slash as his lead vocalist and he has since then become Slash’s full-time vocalist and the couple have released Apocalyptic Love (2012) as Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators, with a tour to follow. The other Alter Bridge members have had their hands full since the last album as well. Guitarist Mark Tremonti has released his solo album under the Tremonti moniker (which featured Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang on bass) and they have also reunited Creed for an album and a tour – only God knows why. What did I think of AB III then? Well, it’s a bloody awesome album, that’s for sure. I will give their two first albums another go as soon as I get five minutes, I have a feeling I’ll be missing out otherwise.

So now the band is back with another album and this time, they’re not even close to being underdogs anymore. The AB III album didn’t only sell like ice-cold Corona on a hot summer day, they also got some major raving reviews from both fans and music press. That’s why it feels kinda strange that the members themselves find the album not as strong as its predecessors and that the music is too mainstream. Well, it takes only one spin of their album to state that this “problem” has been fixed. But at first listen, I found this album somewhat disappointing. Not that it is bad by any means, it’s just that I had expected more. But damn those who give up after only one listen! The album is a grower, rest assured about that and I didn’t need more than one more spin to realise that this album is damn good. It’s also heavy, really heavy. This is metal, make no mistake. The album opens with “City Of Achillies” and its classical intro, but it soon bursts out like a fist on your jaw, probably the heaviest the band has ever been – the song almost adjoins to thrash metal – holy cow! “Addicted To Pain” follows and the heaviness remains, this time I hear old school metal influences and the tune is a complete winner, “Bleed It Dry” is another favourite, still heavy but more melodic and I hear references to their last album here, “Lover” is a damn hit – a ballad that gets heavier along the way and “Peace Is Broken” is ridiculously catchy and total Alter Bridge sounding. I truly love the metal riffing of “Calm The Fire” mixed with its catchy melody, “Farther Than The Sun” is brutal stuff, hard and aggressive metal, but still with a killer melody as a chaser and “All Ends Well” is a pop ballad with a heavy arrangement – this will be a single without a doubt and it’s a fair guess that it will become a big hit for the band. The album ends with the title track and this is the magnum opus of this record – and it’s the band’s masterpiece. It’s seven and half minutes of variation, heaviness combined with melody and darkness – if you want three-minute pop bagatelles, then look elsewhere. In fact, if it is, this album is not for you – Alter Bridge are more complex than that.

This album is a step away from the melodic catchiness that was AB III and is in many ways a risk. The songs aren’t all that direct and need more than just one or two listens, which has a tendency to scare off the most impatient “get to the chorus” listeners. But, albums like this are way more rewarding for us patient ones as they usually last longer than the average fast food for the ears Roxette kind of pop stuff. Come to think of it, these kind of albums will probably last forever. I only have one issue with this album – the production. Or maybe I should say the mixing. It’s sometimes almost annoying to listen to as the mastering is too loud and to escape all the treble, you need to turn up the bass real loud, which in turn can get a bit annoying too. But the songs, the arrangements and the performances here are flawless. I still hail AB III as the better album, but it feels so refreshing with a band that refuses to stand still and that constantly moves forward. Had I reviewed this after the first listen, I would have given this a 6/10, but my final rating will be higher than that, so if it doesn’t stick after the first spin, give another couple rounds. You’d be the happier for it.

Jon Wilmenius (8/10)

Tracklist:

1. Cry of Achilles
2. Addicted to Pain
3. Bleed it Dry
4. Lover
5. The Uninvited
6. Peace is Broken
7. Calm the Fire
8. Waters Rising
9. Farther than the Sun
10. Cry a River
11. All Ends Well
12. Fortress